Cigar City Brewing / Ecliptic Illuminating The Path

Illuminating The Path is an American Strong Ale brewed by Cigar City Brewing and Ecliptic for the First Edition of the El Catador Club. This Oregon / Florida collaboration uses rose hips and marionberries, indigenous to Oregon, plus hibiscus and acai berries from Florida. The beer is then aged in pinot noir barrels from Oregon. Getting a lot of wine like characteristics, which is not too surprising since that was the goal of the beer! Big dark fruits and dark cherry tartness dominate the taste, there is also a grape skin like acidity creating a red wine tannin quality. Moderately sweet, but not too much. This is a very impressive beer.